Humans move in three planes: sagittal, frontal, and
transverse. What do those even mean,
though?
Sagittal: forward and backward
Frontal: side to side
Transverse: rotational
In everyday life, our movements are performed in a
combination of the three planes to some extent. When training you can move in
specific single planes or in multiplanar directions. It is important to expose
yourself to movements within these three planes and to have some degree of
strength/coordination within them. A problem arises, however, in the world we
live in today. Most people move only within the sagittal plane and never move
in the other two. Sagittal movements consist of activities like walking,
running, and forward and backward lunges. Only performing sagittal movements is
not a good strategy, however. You should add more variety to your program and
move in the other two planes as well.
The sagittal plane is my favorite plane and people are made
to be their strongest and fastest in the sagittal plane. However, you need to
be able to shift into the other two “gears” as well, and move competently in
the frontal and transverse planes. This movement variability helps to reduce
the risk of injury, even if you are a purely sagittal athlete.
If you are primarily a sagittal athlete who hasn’t trained
in the other planes, and for whatever reason you have to move slightly out of
that plane, you likely won’t be able to control the movement in a different
direction. As a result, you may get injured. You don’t need to abandon training
in the sagittal plane altogether, but adding some frontal and transverse movements
into your program will improve the longevity of your training. Below are some ideas
for transverse plane and frontal plane moments to try.
Frontal Plane:
Lateral lunges
Banded side steps
Lateral single leg jumps
Side shuffles
Lateral step-ups
Side planks
Pallof Press
(anti side bending)
Transverse Plane:
Transverse
lunges
Medicine ball
twists/chops
Transverse
jumps
Firehydrants
Pallof Press
(anti rotation)
Ryan
Goodell, CSCS
For consultation/personal training/coaching inquiries email:
ryangoodell@weightsandstuff.com
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